1Thessalonians 5:19-23

(NIV) 1 Thessalonians 5:19-23 Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil. May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is the passage that we focused on at church Sunday morning. Our very own Chris Pipes led the message, and did a good job of it if I can say so. And I am proud to announce that I am using my very own Life Application Study Bible to write this blog. :) (Christmas present). The last bible I got, I got in 4th grade. And it was a King James I think...I'm using NIV from now on, if anyone was wondering. So, this bible is pretty cool. It's got all this information about the verses, much more than I was going to say. For instance, for verse 19 (Do not put out the Spirit's fire;), it says that we should not ignore or toss aside the Holy Spirit's gifts. It's more or less what I was thinking, too. Mostly, I thought, don't ignore the Holy Spirit. As for verses 20 and 21, you can pretty much see what it means. And I think this is something that's really important, and something that leads some religions astray because they aren't doing this. TEST EVERYTHING, it says in verse 21. This means, don't just take what you hear as truth. Look it up in your bible and see for yourself. This is also a handy life lesson too. Gossip, specifically, is taken, a lot of times, as truth to some people. I'm not trying to blame anyone either, because I've done the same thing. "Really? She did that? Oh, not talking to her anymore." Sound familiar? Although, I know a lot of people have been on the other side of it too. Anyway, my point to this random thought is, gossip always hurts SOMEONE.

So back on track, avoiding evil. This is in verse 22. "Avoid every kind of evil." Now obviously, we can't avoid everything because of the world we live in, but honestly, this verse makes a lot of sense. Just don't give into temptations. Because then you give Satan a foothold, and then you start to lose track of where you are. Been there. The last verse talks about being kept "blameless before Lord". Apply the Bible, and let God be part of, every aspect of your life. Don't just go listen to a message on Sunday and then do whatever the rest of the week. Live it.

So, that's what I learned Sunday. :) Oh and by the way, I had a great Christmas. Comment and let me know how yours' were! ((Happy New Year, too!)) I'm a bit late, huh? Haha.

-Lauren :)